Burlingham Rudd was about twenty-one years old when he arrived at the British colony of South Carolina in late 1728, early 1729. Even though he left few records behind, much can be learned about him. This blog is written in narrative fashion in an attempt to tell the story of his life and that of his progeny. These anecdotes are based on found records and historical events to provide context and reveal the probable circumstances of their lives, and identify the generations as the family grew.

January 8, 2011

First, a little personal history…

My paternal line is Rudd. When I was growing up, the only people in my life with that surname were my father and his married sister. Their mother, Ella Wilson, had divorced their father, Eulis Franklin Rudd, when my father was about five years old. Their mother remarried a few years later and eventually moved from Florida to Texas. So like most of us, when I began my search for my Rudd ancestors, I started with a five generation chart and soon realized that all I could record were the names of my father and his father. I couldn’t recall the name of my great-grandfather. I did know they had originated in Gadsden Co., Florida. The 1910 census index was the latest available at the time and I found my grandfather, Eulis Franklin Rudd, listed as a son in a household and when I saw his father’s name in print a recollection came rushing forward from somewhere deep in my memory of hearing that name before, Walter Washington Rudd. It was a weird experience. I then remembered hearing that name when I was younger in the very few stories that were told to me about my Rudd family.

This was also about the time that genealogy research tools were hitting the Internet. Message boards were coming into being, RootsWeb as being born followed by US GenWeb and Cyndi’s List. The Church of Latter Day Saints was working to put their trove of records online. Looking back, I don’t think I could have predicted just how profit-making genealogy would become. I’ve found that surely there are a variety of reasons why people become involved in family research, even those who long ago compiled all those books of court records and land deeds seemed to be of the same passion as me, but over the last few years I’ve watched it turn into a commercial enterprise, on it’s way to becoming a huge global industry and, frankly, I’m not really very thrilled about the gobbling up of the free-flow of information. But I digress.

It didn’t take me long to identify that my Rudd line descended from Elias David Rudd and Frances “Fannie” Tanner of Gadsden Co., Florida. After I got past the confusion of my great great-grandfather, Zenithan Miles Rudd of Florida, being a twin to Zeno Minor Rudd of Alabama and that was why I found two men with the same birth date and same initials in two different states at the same time … well, tracking back to their parents, Elias Trowell Rudd and Mary J. Jones, was relatively easy for me because of all of those Rudd cousins who had been involved in researching the same Florida Rudd family for years before me. Not only did they help me fill in the blanks they shared their research information and family genealogies with me. They told me about the different theories that were being discussed concerning the parentage of Elias David Rudd, and the debating about who were and were not his sons. Without their help and the historical knowledge of the research that had gone before, I truly do not believe I would have been able to tell you this story of Burlingham Rudd of Norfolk, England. So I will take this opportunity to name some of those “cousins” from what I’ll call “the old days of genealogy” who shared their work with me back in the days of SNAIL mail, microfilm readers and courthouse adventures. You young people don’t know what you’re missing!

To Kay Bunton of the Burlingham Rudd 3rd branch who brought down the brick wall when she discovered the family of Burlingham Rudd back in Norfolk, England. And to her cousin, Beth Ferguson for providing me with the link back to Kay after so many years had passed.

To Jean Hollars of the George Lounsdell Rudd branch who helped me sort out the branches of the second generation and untangle the assumptions made which threw our Elias David Rudd branch off track.

As well, a big thank you also goes to all the countless number of cousins over the years that I have had contact with and who have shared their research with me. It has been a truly enriching experience to be able to expand my knowledge of my own family history branches. The repository of data and information that I’ve had to work with is truly a compilation of several family members who have shared our same passion for the pursuit of our Rudd identity and as a result I’ve been able to see a much bigger family picture.

Now, I find myself in a unique position. It’s my turn to tell you what I’ve found.

2 comments:

I stumbled across your blog while helping my daughter with a family tree project. Imagine my surprise when I saw my father's name listed as having helped you with information! Thanks for sharing your hard work!